Never in the history of the world have people been so stressed out.

People are on the go 24/7. We race through our day with little time to breathe. We’re overloaded and overwhelmed. We feel like we have to overcommit and multitask to get everything done.

What’s so amazing is the fact that we have never had more efficiency tools and timesaving devices available to us. We stay so busy that we don’t have time for the things that matter most.

Most of us would agree that overworked people with overloaded schedules and overbooked lives is a bad combination. It is bad for our physical, mental, emotional and spiritual health.

Commandment No. 4 is the longest of the Ten Commandments. In this context, God said more about taking a day off than he did about committing murder or adultery. It seems like this is something he wants us to take seriously. He commands us to take a day off every week. It is important to understand this is a commandment, not a suggestion.

In Exodus 20, God said, “Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord, your God. On it you shall not do any work…” The Sabbath formula is really very simple: Work six, rest one.

Sabbath means “day of rest.” God says every seventh day, we are to take time off. In Mark 2:27, Jesus said the Sabbath was made to benefit man. It is important to note that Sabbath-keeping is for our benefit. It is for our own good. The purpose of Sabbath is to preserve health and to prevent burnout.

Every seven days, we need time to recharge physically, emotionally and spiritually. We need to set aside time for rest, recreation, restoration, renewal and worship. It is the way God made us. God expects us to make Sabbath keeping a priority.

Do you think having a regular day off is a good idea? Do you think regular time off would be good for you, your health, your marriage, your family? And what does it mean to keep a day holy anyway?

Holy means “set apart.” The Sabbath is a day that is to be set apart from the rest. It is to be different. God says, “I want you to set aside one day a week to do something different than you do the other six days of the week.” We’ll dig deeper next time …

You may read Steve Greene’s blog at pastorgreene.wordpress.com or you can email him at [email protected].